Pubs win World Cup drinks case

A PUB landlord has won his High Court bid to be allowed to serve alcohol during early morning World Cup matches, opening the door to pubs all over Britain doing the same.

Martin Gough, who runs the White Hart in Brislington, Bristol, appealed against a decision by magistrates in the city who indicated they were willing to allow him to open but said previous High Court rulings prevented them from doing so.

Allowing his appeal, two judges ruled the World Cup was a 'special occasion' in which customers were actively participating and Mr Gough was entitled to open.

The victory by the 39-year-old licensee in his test case paves the way for pubs across the country to open their doors for breakfast and football.

The appeal was allowed by Lord Woolf, the Lord Chief Justice, sitting with Mr Justice Harrison, who said: 'The justices were entitled to exercise their discretion to grant the application.'

Lord Woolf then used the High Court's own powers to grant a special order of exemption so that Mr Gough can open early.

Landlords round the country will have to apply to local magistrates for permission to open early, but local courts are expected to follow the High Court ruling.

Meanwhile, ITV has been forced to lower the cost of sponsorship for its football World Cup advert slots after failing to attract enough interest from advertisers.

It had hoped to attract bids of about £3.5m for sponsorship, which would have accompanied all its programming during the competition.

ITV said it was now 'looking for bids of £3m' but was in negotiations that could lead to lower prices being offered. Potential buyers said they had been quoted £2.5m, the Financial Times reported. The advertising slots will be broadcast before games, at half-time and after the final whistle.

A smaller audience is expected compared with past World Cups because most fans will be at work during the matches because of the time difference with Korea and Japan.

Advertisers have also been deterred by England's tough first round draw, which features games against Argentina, Sweden and Nigeria. A source close to one of the companies approached by ITV said: 'The only game ITV has to itself is England-Sweden. When you consider that England might get dumped out of the competition after the group stage, [the ITV package] does not look very attractive. I'm sure ITV will be able to find a sponsor, but it will only get what the market is willing to pay.'

None of the 15 companies that are paying millions of dollars to Fifa, the game's governing body, to sponsor the event has yet shown any interest.

ITV said: 'These things are normally sorted out at the last minute. We're very confident we won't have any trouble.'

A HIGH Court decision expected today could pave the way for pubs across the country to serve alcohol during early morning World Cup matches. A Bristol landlord is appealing against a decision by magistrates in the city who refused his application to open early during four important games. If he wins it is likely magistrates across the country will take it as a lead.